Meet Emory Goizueta’s MBA Class of 2017

STUDENTS DRAWN TO SOUTHERN CHARM AND ATLANTA OPPORTUNITIES

Goizueta has more than just graduate placement and salaries going for it. For students like Brathwaite, the school is the perfect mix of culture and location. “I was led to Emory’s Goizueta Business School because it was the only program that combined a top-notch business education, with an intimate learning environment, against the backdrop of a dynamic city (hello, HOTlanta!).”

Certainly, Emory is blessed with its Atlanta locale. The city is home to celebrated brands like Coca-Cola, Home Depot, UPS, and Delta Airlines. The metro area boasts 16 companies in the Fortune 500 – with the headquarters for another 12 Fortune 1000 companies based there too. Overall, Atlanta ranks fourth – behind just New York City, Chicago and Houston – among cities with the most Fortune 500 companies.  This wealth of concentrated resources offers plentiful internships and networking, along with opportunities for win-win partnership like class projects.

From its “amazing restaurants” to “cultural activities,” Atlanta has captured the imagination of incoming students like Diana Koucheravy, a Navy veteran who previously worked in sales and logistics. “Goizueta’s location in Atlanta provides a multitude of advantages—proximity of multiple Fortune 500 headquarters for potential employment post-MBA, a vibrant and diverse community to live and work in, and easy access to the world’s busiest airport, Hartsfield-Jackson, to name a few.”

Goizueta has long been known for its small size, best represented by its 5:1 student-to-faculty ratio. However, the school’s tight-knit community and southern hospitality also prompted many 2017 Class members to trek down to Atlanta. Lee Rensch, who grew up on an Indian Reservation in North Dakota before becoming an international tax consultant at PwC, describes the culture as a “family-like atmosphere where students and alum greet each other with hugs and not handshakes.” Dan Barnett, a West Point grad who served as a U.S. Army Infantry Officer and Intelligence Officer, experienced a similar dynamic. “When I visited Goizueta in January, the first year student giving us a tour was having to judiciously split her time between answering our questions and saying hi to all the students and professors we were crossing paths with—and I thought that was awesome. The access to faculty and the camaraderie amongst the students really made me feel like Goizueta was the right fit for me.”

And it wasn’t a carefully-choreographed sales pitch either, adds Pooja Ganesan, who studied anthropology at John Hopkins as an undergrad. “Although it has only been a few weeks since we arrived on campus, I have no regrets about my decision—my classmates are encouraging and open-minded, my career coach has been invaluable, my professors are engaging and challenging, and the city of Atlanta has exceeded my expectations.”

167 STUDENTS WITH 167 DREAMS

Like Cheers, Goizueta is the place where everybody knows your name. By students’ second year, they know your story too. Matt Bruer plans to shift from healthcare consulting to the entertainment industry. Brody Craven, trained as a chemical engineer, plans to use Goizueta’s mid-semester modules to study businesses abroad. And Madison Akerblom hopes to take on leadership roles before landing “an awesome job.”

However, they are united in a more profound mission, best expressed by DeMarcus. “Ultimately, the common goal at Goizueta Business School is to leave the school a better place than you originally found it. I will give it my best shot.” 

To read profiles of incoming Emory Goizueta students – along with their advice on tackling GMAT, applications, and interviews – click on the student links below. 

Madison Akerblom / Pacific Palisades, CA

Dan Barnett / Fort Worth, TX

Simone Brathwaite / Orlando, FL

Matt Bruer / St. Louis, MO

Brody Craven / Oxford, AL

Clay Daniel DeMarcus / Atlanta, GA

Pooja Ganesan / Hockessin, DE

Diana Koucheravy / Virginia Beach, VA

Lee Rensch / Fort Berthold Indian Reservation, ND

Elen Thompson / Silver Spring, MD

DON’T MISS: POETS&QUANTS’ JOHN A. BYRNE IN A VIDEO ONE-ON-ONE INTERVIEW WITH GOIZUETA DEAN ERIKA JAMES